DMHS 43

Mila’s eyes shook like a candle flame flickering in the wind.

“Tonight, pack your things and leave. I will escort you out of the village.”

But Mila only stared blankly at him without moving.

“Hurry. If you want to avoid pursuit from the thieves, the faster you escape the better.”

Mila looked up at Kian with the same vacant face. At last the words that came from her mouth were these.

“Where should I go?”

“Anywhere would be better. It would be better than being caught by those men and sold off to some place.”

“Would that place really be better than here?”

“What?”

Kian, who had been focused on outside matters, finally looked properly at Mila.

Her brown eyes… were empty. They were the eyes of someone who had abandoned all hope for the world.

“Anyway, here I get three meals a day without fail. I do not have to wander from village to village. But if I run away, I will have nowhere to go. There is no guarantee I will not run into another band of thieves.”

“……”

“I appreciate your intention to help. But I will stay here.”

Mila pointed at the ground beneath her feet.

Kian lowered his head deeply.

‘Ah…’

Lucien’s words had been right.

–There are many unfortunate people in the world. But you cannot save them all.

They cannot be saved.

–Unless you were a god, no, even for a god that would be impossible.

It is impossible.

–Helping that girl will not change anything.

Nothing will change…

And what had Kian answered then?

–I know.

Kian now felt belated shame.

No. He had only thought he knew. He had not truly known.

He thought even if not everyone, at least those in danger before his eyes could be saved. He thought some lives could be changed. He thought that much was possible. Foolishly, he had once again been mistaken.

His heart ached. Flustered, Kian stepped back. But right behind him was the door.

Thunk.

Startled by the light sound, Kian quickly lifted his head. In his eyes appeared the small candle and the open book.

With his extraordinary vision he barely read the words written inside the book.

[ Inheriting the will of the Goddess of Creation, Celestia, our kingdom that shines with long history and tradition… ]

What Mila had been reading was the Great Charter. From the moment he entered the room, Kian had felt an odd sense of discord here.

‘The Great Charter…’

Now he thought he knew the reason.

Even if it was only his imagination, he had to check.

“Then why is Miss Mila studying law alone at such a late hour?”

A crack appeared in Mila’s indifferent face. Kian asked again.

“If you are only to be sold as a slave anyway, why are you doing something that has nothing to do with your life?”

“That is just… habit.” Mila made an excuse.

“This year I received admission to the Academy’s law department. But things turned out like this, so I could not go.”

“Then leave here and go to the Academy.”

“What would be the point? They would not accept me. My father, who ran a merchant company, has passed away. All our property was taken. Of course I cannot pay the tuition, and I do not have a guarantor for admission. And what about my mother who is captured? My life is already ruined. Everything is finished!”

Flash!

The world outside the window suddenly turned white.

Right after, boom! A huge explosion shook the ground.

The smell of smoke spread through the air. Something big had clearly happened outside.

Startled, Mila tried to open the window. Kian reached out and stopped her.

“We do not know what is outside. Stay here.”

Kian went out to the hallway and ran outside the building.

Finding the destination was easy. Not far from Mila’s lodging, red flames were rising.

“What happened?”

“I do not know! All I heard was that a fire suddenly broke out!”

“Let’s go quickly!”

The thieves, too, ran in confusion toward the place where the flames rose. Kian followed them quietly, making sure not to be noticed.

When they reached the open space, the thieves were caught in a transparent net, floating together in the air.

The thieves who had run ahead also stepped on the magic circles inscribed on the ground and were yanked into the air.

Kian noticed the magic circles drawn densely across the ground and stepped back to avoid them.

When he lifted his eyes and looked forward, he saw Frederick standing in the middle of the clearing, his robe fluttering as he laughed.

“Hahaha! How could mere thieves escape my magic!”

Beside him stood Daisy.

“There is no need for me to step in, then.”

And sitting slanted in front of them with his arms crossed was…

“Do not let a single one escape.”

It was Lucien.

Kian approached them with a bewildered look.

“What happened all of a sudden?”

“Sir Kian.”

Daisy greeted Kian with a bright smile. Even as she spoke, more and more panicked thieves who gathered were caught by Frederick’s magic and bound in the air.

“As you see, we are eliminating the thieves.”

“When did you plan this operation?”

“The truth is…” Daisy looked around as she continued.

“Lord Lucien came to our lodging. He said that as one who protects the kingdom, it made no sense to ignore thieves who torment the kingdom’s people.”

Kian could not shake off his dazed feeling.

“Lord Lucien said that?”

“I was very surprised as well. Lord Lucien has never cared about anything outside his coming-of-age journey. Especially since the state of the kingdom is so chaotic now that if he paid attention to outside matters, he could not even continue his journey.”

“That’s right.”

“But since he said it first, Frederick and I had no choice but to follow his will gladly.”

Time passed, and all the thieves in the village were captured.

After that, Daisy and Frederick searched the village and gathered even the people who had been hiding.

They separated those who had been dragged here as slaves from the thieves. Mila was among the group with her mother.

“What shall we do now?”

Daisy asked Lucien. Lucien pointed his chin toward Kian.

“Do as you like.”

Kian stepped forward.

“First, the valuables stacked in the warehouse will be distributed to those who were dragged here. It is dangerous to move separately, so until you reach a large town you should travel together. Once there, you can sell the goods and then each go your own way. Do not forget to hire escorts as well.”

“Thank you!”

“Thank you, sir.”

Those who had nearly been sold as slaves cried with joy.

Next Kian turned toward the thieves.

“Among you, is there anyone who wishes to live with a new mindset?”

It was a strange question even to the thieves. After glancing at each other, one of them opened his mouth.

“Tch, don’t try to fool us with your strange talk. If you mean to kill us, then kill us, or if you mean to cripple us, then cripple us.”

“I have no intention of killing you. Nor of breaking your legs.”

“Are you saying you will just let us go?”

“For now, yes.”

Not only the band of thieves, but even Daisy and Frederick were shocked and tried to stop Kian.

“You cannot release these men!”

Kian signaled to Daisy and Frederick to wait.

“Of course I will not simply let you go. I intend to send you to a formal trial. For reference, the nearest court is in the Ilya region.”

“Ha. You nobles mean to drag all of us there?”

“Since that is not possible, I am giving you one last chance. I want three promises. Do not steal from others. Do not lie. Do not harm others unless your life is in danger.”

Kian raised one finger at a time as he spoke.

“Those who will vow to these three conditions will be given the right to lead the way to the city, and I will help reduce their sentence in court.”

Kian’s words could be read in two ways. He was offering them a chance at forgiveness, while also telling them to betray the thieves they belonged to.

Suddenly the thieves’ boss laughed.

“So in the end, you mean to leave the thieves in the hands of thieves? Like entrusting fish to a cat.”

“That is why I asked first. If there is anyone who will cast away their old life and live with a new mindset. The evils you already committed cannot be undone. You cannot avoid paying for your crimes. But the future you will live can…”

Kian hesitated at the end. In the end, instead of saying “it can be,” he said,

“It might be changed.”

At the uncertain words, most of the thieves laughed along with their boss.

But not all of them laughed. Six or seven thieves with stiff expressions raised their hands one by one.

The boss was furious.

“You bastards… are you saying you will betray us?”

One of the thieves who had raised his hand answered.

“Forgive me, boss. But I want to wash my hands of this.”

Another thief added.

“If pulling out of wrongdoing is betrayal, then so be it. But I cannot do this anymore. I have had enough of staining my hands with people’s blood just to save my own skin. I want to start over as a new man.”

Kian called out the thieves who had raised their hands. He drew up a magic contract containing the vows and freed them.

Those who were no longer thieves distributed the goods from the warehouse to the people who had been dragged here as slaves.

They also received magic scrolls from Frederick, so they could prevent the remaining thieves from escaping.

While the work was being finished, someone approached Kian and bowed.

It was Mila.